Midland Quagmire
The lands that lie between the Dhulkan jungle and the Sapphire Veil, the swampy marshlands that have earned the name only make up a small portion of the territory. Featuring rolling hills, farming villages, forests, and marshland, many peoples have made their home here. Ruins from before the Fall are covered by creepers and vines or sinking into the muck. Treasure can still be found in them and legends are abound of a great palace deep beneath the mud of the swamp. A mushroom people called the Myconid have inherited the swamps and claim that the treasures are their inheritance. Somewhere between relative safety and tense anticipation, the people who live here are wary of the two great nations to their east and west, horribly aware that they are caught in the middle. They carry on fighting for their livelihood against the hostile wildlife, knowing that their quasi-peaceful existence could be shattered in a moment. Local Dungeons: Myconid Nexus, Trapper's Glade, Abandoned Fungi Farms The Inheritors of Decay After the Fall, these lands were quickly taken back by nature. Whoever occupied these lands was erased entirely from existence, very similar to the Azer's fate. There stone forts and temples were lost to encroaching forests and sinking lands. Newly formed rivers and aquifers quickly reduced the land to a swamp. Remnants of the vanished race's world still held on. Golem guardians and ethereal spirits wandered about these hauntings, searching for purpose. The most mysterious of the guardians is a great fungus that quickly covered everything. Calling themselves Myconid, these Fungus people set up basic structures in the basin and spread quickly. By 20 A.F., they had contacted the Elves to the north and were afraid of them. These mushroom folk were timid and cautious. They forbid the Elves from entering the quagmire. A century went by and little occurred. The Elves circumvented the marshes and began re-establishing outposts. The Myconid and the Century of Reckoning When the Yuan-Ti armies raced northward in 105 A.F., the weak Myconid were caught in a flood of knives and teeth. They fought back, hid in their swamps, and attempted to avoid the attackers as it became obvious that these creatures were after the Elves, not them. However, these enemies were adapted to the swampy waters and forested surroundings. Many Myconid died and many more hid deep in their swamps. When peace settled over the midlands in 212 A.F., the Myconid were broken. The landscape was torched, homes destroyed, and rifts in their own society exposed. The Myconid blamed the Elves for this scourge, believing that the Yuan-Ti would not have come had the Elves gone elsewhere. Influx of Travelers The wide stretches of grassland and forest not populated by Myconid were still empty, torn to pieces by the war. However, as other races recovered, hundreds moved south to explore this strange new land. They found inhospitable Elves to the north and dense, deadly jungle to the south. However, a piece of calm, though ravaged landscape was uninhabited. Wood Elf explorers, humans, halflings, and even a few dwarves made their way south. Small melting pot villages were built and founded trade posts. The Myconid took to these new arrivals much like they did the Elves, better off without them. For some inescapable reason though, they seemed to prefer these races to others. Some imagine it is the short life spans of these races compared to the ageless Elves. Minor trade occurs, but the Myconid have little to offer and need even less. What brought conflict between the two factions were the ruins of the lost race. The Myconid guarded them, claiming to have inherited their treasures and that they were charged as guardians. Travellers continually raid these ruins, sometimes slaying the Myconid guards. This has led to increased distrust and hate of outsiders. The Midlands Grow and the Gladeborn By 490 A.F., these peoples had founded brick and mortar homes among the swampland. The Yuan-Ti raided these towns and outlying farms. The villagers pleaded with the Elves for aid, but none was given. They trusted these outsiders only a bit more than the Yuan-Ti. For this reason the Midlanders, as they became known, created militas and built defenses for themselves. Increasing population, a healthy commercial market, and armed garrisons increasingly scared the Yuan-Ti from considering all-out invasion. Indeed, the Yuan-Ti began trading with the Midlanders. Besides the local militias, a sect of specialists was brought together under the purpose of defending the Midlanders from threats both from the South and the North. Made up of hunters who had spent their entire lives in the marshes, the Gladeborn were founded. These hunters, trappers, bounty hunters, and Eldritch Knights all have a vested interest in the affairs of the Midlanders. Both ally and enemy to all comers, they can never be relied upon if they smell treachery. Specializing in guerilla warfare, they utilize traps, ambushes, the swampy terrain, and their wits to hold off dire foes. The Anathema, leader of the Yuan-Ti, was frustrated by this new buffer zone between them and their enemy, but could not find the resources to break it. It was convinced that it could not fight the might of the Sapphire Veil reinforced by an army of angry men, halflings, and dwarves. Present Day The Myconid are building something. No one knows for sure, but it appears they are raising some great structure from the muck. When asked, they only say "we carry on our forefathers work". This development has ignite the imaginations of Midlanders, while scaring their leaders. Within Elven society, some are fighting the isolationist policies of their immortal leaders. They believe they should strengthen ties with the Midlanders. They can see their empire languishing under the centuries. Every year they grow weaker. Many believe the answer to this atrophy is to work with the outside world. Many assert, that solution begins with the Midlanders. The Yuan-Ti continue to terrorize villages, trade with others, and seed cults dedicated to the Anathema in others.